Conventional wisdom suggests that a naming consultant should be a “creative,” perhaps someone with a linguistics background. Hogwash.

Many naming “gurus” would scoff at the idea of an engineer as a namer, but let’s not forget:

engineer [ verb ] : to plan, design, or build according to scientific principles

Speaking of “scientific principles,” I believe the most important attributes of a great name are rooted in the social and behavioral sciences, specifically the principles of influence, bias, and emotional connection. Let’s be honest, most naming consultants able to support themselves in the name game will have a solid understanding of these principles and their own beliefs on if/how they may be applied to a specific product or service in light of the target demographic. In other words, they are in essence trying to engineer a name; particularly when combined with the fact that most agencies purport to have their own “___ step proprietary naming process.”

Therefore, it is rather comical that anyone would think that an engineer would not make a better-than-average naming consultant. In fact, the most creative people I know are engineers. Think about it, what are some of the most creative aspects of products you own? Who do you think came up these innovations? Probably engineers.

As you will read on this site, I believe a “proprietary naming process” is BS marketing and a crutch. After all, there is no way a single step-wise process is the best way to develop names for everything from a bar of soap to a new restaurant. Let’s be real.

A great name is worthless if it cannot be protected and competitors can come along later and ride the coattails of a great brand. A naming agency must have the legal chops to comprehend the potential scope of protection associated with a name and advise the client accordingly. If common law usage of similar variations of a name is prevalent, the likely scope of protection may be extremely narrow even though a name may be protected via federal trademark registration. Just imagine how upset you would be if you spent years building a brand around a name only to later learn that your rights in that name are so narrow that there is little you can do when a competitor comes out with a similar name!

Is your branding agency providing you with a comprehensive legal opinion addressing these issues? I doubt it. The Wobble™ naming service includes a comprehensive US trademark search and opinion for each name that we propose (read more here), which means we aren’t going to propose names surrounded by potential common law issues and plagued by narrow scope.

So, will an engineering background result in a better pool of potential names? Perhaps. Is it essential? Absolutely not.

However, will a trademark law background result in a better pool of potential names? Absolutely. Is it essential? Only if you care about being able to protect a name and have an understanding of the likely scope of protection should you ever need to “persuade” a competitor to move away from a similar name.

Combine the independent thought and judgment of an engineering mindset with deep roots in trademark law and you have the best of both worlds. The resulting name consultant will be significantly less likely to even propose names that may be weighed down by trademark issues, and should have the mindset that prevents the client, or the namer, from irrationally and prematurely falling in love with a name.

Would you still feel more comfortable with a hipster branding guru? No problem, check out our alter ego page to see us poke a little fun at the typical naming guru profiles (yep, engineers and attorneys can have a sense of humor).